IT'S IN HIS KISS

Becca Thorpe comes to Lucky Harbor to distance herself from messy family issues and runs smack dab into Sam the Sexy Surfer, whose board and broad shoulders hide an intense personality and a heavily armored heart.

From the moment she dips her toes in the Pacific Ocean and tastes Lucky Harbor’s ranch-flavored popcorn, Becca is enchanted by the sweet small town; meeting the gorgeous surfer on the beach is icing on the cake, as is discovering that her rental apartment is right next door to the warehouse where he and his partners run their charter-boat tour business. Sam and Becca run into each other everywhere, and neither can ignore their sizzling chemistry, which becomes a problem once they’ve acted on it and then realize Becca wants to fill the open admin position in Sam's company. She convinces the partners to hire her, then goes about reinventing herself while highlighting the tour company’s positive impact on the community. It seems everyone’s in love with Becca, which both inspires and intimidates Sam, who has his own family issues to work through and is generally suspicious of emotional entanglements. When Becca’s family tracks her down, Sam is her staunchest supporter, forcing them to own up to their failings toward her and creating opportunities for new beginnings. However, helping Becca navigate her family’s shortcomings makes them both more aware of Sam’s, and suddenly, their undefined, open-ended relationship is under pressure. The novel is a typical warm, funny Lucky Harbor combination, with a sexy couple who must deal with individual issues before they can truly find happiness with the other. The final conflict seems a little magnified but only slightly detracts from an overall satisfying romantic arc.

Another successful light, sexy contemporary romance from Shalvis, with storytelling that mixes humor and emotion.